Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “which's” come from?

which's (English) comes from English which, from Middle English which, from Old English hwelċ, from Proto-Germanic hwilīkaz, from Proto-Germanic hwaz, from Proto-Indo-European kʷos, from Proto-Indo-European kʷ- — The primary interrogative root.

which's (English): Of which; alternative to inanimate sense of...

Definitions

  1. Of which; alternative to inanimate sense of...

Ancestry of “which's”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishwhichWhat, of those mentioned or implied; The one or...
2Middle Englishwhichwhich
3Old Englishhwelċwhich
4Proto-Germanichwilīkazwhat kind of, what sort of
5Proto-Germanichwazwho, what; whose; whom
6Proto-Indo-EuropeankʷosSee *kʷis
7Proto-Indo-Europeankʷ-The primary interrogative root
Every word from Proto-Indo-European kʷ- →